011. Ruth Croft | The winning any surface any distance approach

Ruth Croft is a kiwi trail runner sponsored by Adidas Terrex.

A great friend of mine and definitely someone I've looked up to since I got into the international trail running scene, Ruth shares her 2021 journey which led her to some incredible achievements, including a win at Tarawera Ultramarathon, a 2nd place finish in her 100 mile debut at Western States, and another win at Les Templiers to cap off her season. She definitely deserves a mention among the best female trail runners of 2021.

Her results are built on a mountain of consistency and humble hard work, both on the trails and on the roads. Her collaboration with Jonathan Wyatt, a legend of mountain running, two time olympian and currently her coach, has led her to great results on virtually any surface and any distance, from 10k to the marathon on the roads, from short mountain running races to 100 milers on the trails.

We chatted about her approach to training and racing, her 2021 season and her plans for 2022, and her view on the international trail running scene and its development over the past few years.

Ruth has written two training plans for Vert, one designed for a 50k race and one dedicated to trail runners who live in a city (yes, you ca be a trail runner even if you don't always have access to the trails...Ruth herself proves it!). They both have a really good structure and great training tips that can be useful for any trail runners looking to improve his/her performance.

Follow Ruth on Instagram: @ruthcrofty

Sign up to her training plans on vert.run

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